Obituary: Stefanie Gulden Jackson

Stefanie Gulden Jackson, beloved sister, mother, grandmother and friend, passed away on Friday, August 8, 2014 in Corte Madera, CA, after a courageous two-and-a-half year battle with cancer. She was 75.

Stefanie was born in New York on December 18, 1938, to Ruth and Immo Gulden. She had a happy childhood in Rumson, New Jersey with her brother, Paul. She attended Rumson Country Day School, Miss Hall’s School in Pittsfield, MA, then Wellesley College and the Sorbonne.

In her early twenties she lived in London and New York working in public relations for the fashion industry. She moved to Kennett Square, in 1969 where she lived for over 40 years. There she raised her two children while graduating from the University of Delaware, becoming a CFA Charterholder and joining Wilmington Trust as a fixed income analyst.

Stefanie had many interests and was an active volunteer in the community, including at Upland Country Day School while her children were there. She served on the Special Events Committee and Board of Trustees of the Bayard Taylor Memorial Library in Kennett Square and was instrumental in running fundraising programs, recruiting volunteers and pulling together every detail of the annual Home & Garden Day. For many years she also put her financial acumen to work as the Library Board’s treasurer.

Stefanie was also an excellent gardener and an active member of the Spade & Trowel Club of Kennett Square, where she helped with the club’s display at the Philadelphia Flower Show.

Stefanie shared her delight for books with her grandchildren and as a volunteer reading teacher. She also enjoyed tennis, biking, bridge, horses, point-to-point races and was a German Shepard lover, her faithful companions over the years. She was a constant, loving support to her children and their many activities and interests.

There was a special place in her heart for Chautauqua, NY, the lakeside community of her summer home. She spent most summers there starting in the 1940s and enjoyed the wide and varied intellectual stimulation that Chautauqua provides.

In 2012 Stefanie moved to Corte Madera in Marin County, CA to be closer to her ever-growing family. She is survived by her brother Paul and wife Joyce Gulden, son Christopher and wife Kathleen Jackson, daughter Daphne and husband Mike Dickson, and her grandchildren, Cristina, Eleanor, Samantha, Flint and Amanda.

Stefanie’s friends, whether recent or those of more than 60 years, have commented on how important she was to them and their lives. Her dear friends Susan and Botho remind us that “Stefi touched so many people with her kindness, thoughtfulness and her generosity of mind and spirit”.

Her wisdom, compassion, patience, strength of will, humor and love for those in her life will be deeply missed.

A memorial service will be held this autumn in Kennett to celebrate her life. She will be buried at The Chautauqua Cemetery in New York. Memorial contributions can be made in her honor to her favorite charity, the Bayard Taylor Memorial Library.